Miami, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Giancarlo Stanton smacked a pair of homers and the Miami Marlins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-5, in the opener of a three-game set.

Stanton cracked a two-run and solo shot and also made a fantastic diving grab to rob an extra-base hit from Kolten Wong along the right-field warning track in the fifth inning for Miami, which has won three of its last four games on the heels of a 2-6 stretch.

"I didn't think he had a chance at it ... he ran a long way for that ball," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said of Stanton's catch.

Christian Yelich was 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Tom Koehler (8-9) struck out five and allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks over five-plus innings to notch the win.

The Cardinals had the game-tying run at first base in the ninth after plating two runs against Steve Cishek, but the submarine right-hander struck out Matt Adams to end the game and record his 30th save of the year.

Matt Holliday whacked a pair of doubles among his four hits to go with an RBI and scored a run and Jon Jay smashed a two-run blast for the Cardinals, who have dropped four of their last six games.

"Those guys have been playing unreal," Wong said of the Marlins. "It was tough for us."

Shelby Miller (8-9) surrendered five runs on eight hits and two walks over five frames to garner the loss.

After the Cardinals tied the game following a three-run top of the fourth, the Marlins plated a pair in the home half and added another in the seventh to go ahead.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a one-out single and Adeiny Hechavarria followed by lining a triple down the right-field line to bring him home. Hechavarria scored on Yelich's base hit up the middle two batters later.

Yelich began the seventh with a bunt single and Jordany Valdespin's base hit put runners on first and second. During Stanton's at-bat, Sam Freeman uncorked a wild pitch that went off the back wall and ricocheted right back to catcher A.J. Pierzynski.

Pierzynski, though, threw the ball away trying to throw out Yelich at third and he scampered home easily to give the Marlins a 6-3 lead. Valdespin was thrown out at home following Casey McGehee's comebacker back to the mound.

Wong's RBI triple and Holliday's run-scoring infield single in the ninth capped the scoring.

Earlier, Stanton's two-run, opposite-field blast into the Marlins bullpen opened the scoring in the first and his moonshot onto the concourse in left- center in the third gave Miami a 3-0 advantage.

St. Louis got all three of those runs back in the fourth. Holliday doubled to lead off the frame before Adams and Jhonny Peralta both struck out. Pierzynski's base hit into left pushed across Holliday and Jay followed by clubbing his two-run blast into the seats in right beyond the bullpen to tie the score.

Game Notes

This was Stanton's 13th career multi-homer game and his first since May 23. He has 31 homers this season, tying him with the Chicago White Sox's Jose Abreu and Baltimore's Nelson Cruz for the MLB lead ... Miami was 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position, while St. Louis finished 2-for-11.